Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Disclaimer: Not all of this is based off of personal experience or personal knowledge of someone else experiencing such things.

Confession: I have a terrible habit and undeniable flaw of COMPLETELY misinterpreting situations that really shouldn't be (and don't have the luxury of being) misinterpreted.

Confused yet? Okay, good. Me too.

I suppose this blog post will primarily serve selfish therapeutic purposes, but I know I'm not the only one out there who struggles with similar communicative obstacles.

Let us rewind and provide some background information. I am a 23 year old, single female who is almost one year into the post-graduation world. I've had my fair share of the dating experience (really casual to somewhat casual to kinda serious to pretty serious), but that's really not something I care to blog about (you should be grateful). But throughout all of this experience and the experiences that never led to something, I've learned a couple things about myself. The biggest surprise of them all? I frequently misinterpret texts, emails, and even in-person interactions, causing me to build up these unwarranted expectations of both the other person involved and any future scenarios. In layman's terms: stop your flirting if you're not willing to take it any further...you're messing with my mind.

I have a really hard time believing that I'm capable of "inventing situations" in my mind. Any text/email/in-person conversation that has led to me thinking, "Hmmm...is he flirting? Or is that just me," has to come from SOMEWHERE. I'm not that delusional, nor am I that desperate. So the question remains, is it friendship or is it something more?

Here's some Cosmo-esque tips that I've scoured from the world wide web...Five Signs He's Interested:1. He tells someone, like a mutual friend...uh, okay, this isn't high school anymore. In this day and age, I think the mutual friends are harder to come by anyways... maybe you've had an interaction with a co-worker or someone random in which mutual friends are fewer and further between...isn't that something that's supposed to happen more frequently in the real world?2. "The look"...yeah this doesn't exist anymore. This myth of a "look" is exactly what got me and other girls my age into the position we're currently in.3. The conversation...well goodness, I hope he's paying attention regardless. If we're deciding between friendship or something more, both motivations should result in active conversation.4. He appears unexpectedly...again, what a myth! Nobody appears outside your window with a boom box over his head, nor runs to your gate at the airport to tell you to not get on the plane. Please, moving on.5. EVERYONE likes you....what kind of advice is this?? Everyone likes you?! I consider myself to be relatively friendly and I would like to believe that more people enjoy my company more than the people that despise it. But still. There continues to be no differentiation between friend and significant other.

Well, this really leaves us nowhere besides only reiterating my belief that people just need to be straight up and forward. I've said some brutally honest things before in my life...but looking back, I wouldn't change a thing.

I'm closer to 25 than I am to 21 and who has the time for games at this point? So readers everywhere, here's the moral of the story. If you've been playing games with someone, or leading them on in any way (whether it's in a relationship, a friendship, a rivalry, etc), lets put it all to rest. Because flirting is dangerous territory...although it may be beneficial in some aspects, it's always important to consider the long-term ramifications of consistent and incessant flirtatiousness.

Thoughts? Agree/disagree? Bottom line...I'm single and I'm gonna try to enjoy it while it lasts :)

Monday, April 11, 2011

Alright...I'm really not much of a crier. Or is it spelled cryer? Nope. Crier. I never cried during movies growing up (except "My Dog Skip" or basically any other movie involving adorable golden retrievers and/or puppies). For example, my birthday party one year involved a big group of us going to Pearl Harbor. And I didn't shed a tear. I was almost abnormal.

I started crying more once I went to college. Not really sure why...things just probably seemed more real. Life was actually moving pretty fast and sometimes transitions can just throw me for a bit of an emotional loop. I was homesick for like a day, then moved on...but I think I just realized that there was no point in holding back tears for the sake of just holding them back.

Plus, I think it feels good to well up every once in awhile. But sometimes, even my own tears puzzle me. Now, for some examples (from this week...):

1. The trailer for Disney's African Cats: Kingdom of Courage movie. Especially frame 0:35. I mean seriously. How cute are those little muffins?! Now, I'm not sure why my instinct is to tear up about it. But alas, it happens. So I probably won't be able to see this one in theaters due to my potential watershed. Netflix Queue, be on the lookout.

2. A recent episode of "Kate Plus 8" involving koalas. This is most likely cause by the same thing that causes reason #1...whatever that thing is. I should clarify...I really don't like this show anymore. I did enjoy it at one time when they were all a big happy family renewing their wedding vows. But now I'm pretty much over it. Okay, tangent. Moving on.

3. Little baby Grace Briann. For those of you who don't know, I am now a volunteer at Sanford Hospital here in Sioux Falls and every 2nd & 4th Sundays (and other various shifts that I pick up), I rock little tiny babies in the NICU. Due to privacy reasons, I can't divulge any information about particular babies over the internet...but since the Cradle Roll available to the general public, it's fair game! Anyways, I had the honor to hold baby Grace for almost two hours Sunday morning. She seems to be quite healthy, but just arrived a couple weeks too early! She is super warm and cuddly and absolutely full of love. Her parents (whoever they are) are truly lucky! She cuddled into my chest and would occasionally yawn (and fart) and stretch her little tiny hands. This volunteering experience has truly impacted me. While I'm not one of the crazy, Grandma-aged baby rockers who constantly sing lullabies to the babies, I do take the one-on-one time I have with each little one and lift up some prayers for their tiny bodies. So, Grace, Tayrell, Braxin, Isabella, and all of the other babies and families that live on that floor, have been fighting for life much harder than I have ever had to...and that alone is worth some tears of joy :)

4. My toenail (or lack thereof)...I had it removed two weeks ago. And sometimes it burns. Like it's on fire. It hasn't happened for a couple of days, but still. It causes the tears to well.

5. The little boy who played Chip at the recent showing of "Beauty and the Beast" at the Pavilion. Seriously. He was so adorbs. Even ask Collin...or my dad. He had the cutest little boy voice ever and made me want to give him a giant hug. Also, I'm not a creep.

See, emotions and tears aren't always a bad thing. In fact, it might even be considered a GOOD thing if your happy tears outweigh your sad tears. So cry on criers, and I might have a tissue that you can borrow.